Brighter
by momoxtoshiro
Summary: "People fall sometimes, Ruby. They need help getting back up, because sometimes they can't do it alone. That's why we rely on other people. " [Spoilers for V2, ep 6].


**Bumblebee got a heart-to-heart in episode 6 yesterday. White Rose needed one, too.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.**

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Brighter

Weiss strutted about the ballroom, snapping the occasional order at Yang to watch where she was putting things.

The buffoon had already crushed a pile of Weiss' doilies with one of her monstrous speakers, and Weiss was beginning to think it was purposeful now.

There were only two days left before the dance, and the two of them had been working hard to fix things up and put them into place so everything could be perfect.

Aside from the frequent little bickering spats she had with Weiss, Yang stayed mostly quiet, and the heiress knew it was because she was thinking about Blake. The blonde had ensured both Ruby and Weiss she would talk to the Faunus girl tomorrow, the night before the dance. She kept promising Blake would show up, and Weiss had to wonder what she had in mind for a method of making that happen.

But while Yang was spacing out from time to time worrying about Blake, Weiss realized the Faunus girl was not the only teammate that needed looking out for right now.

Ruby was seated at an empty table, much in the same manner as she had been the past few days when Weiss and Yang had been setting things up for the dance. Her posture hardly changed, always slumped forward not unlike when she was forced to take a pop quiz she never studied for.

But the atmosphere around her now was not simply dread for something as trivial as a grade, but genuine discomfort.

Weiss knew she was upset about Blake – they all were – but she knew Ruby was taking this particularly hard.

Back when they had all first arrived there at Beacon, Yang had brought Ruby over to talk to Blake to try and make friends with her, long before Weiss herself was on good terms with her leader

. Before she had stormed over to tell them all to be quiet and let people sleep, she could still remember how Ruby had seemed to be smitten with the Faunus girl as they talked about their books. Ruby had smiled then, probably for the first time since she had gotten to Beacon and to a person other than her sister.

Blake held a place in Ruby's heart that Weiss could never have, and she was well-aware of this.

But now, Weiss was concerned about Ruby almost as much as she was Blake.

Yang had been so preoccupied with dance preparations and planning out whatever she intended to say or do for Blake tomorrow to encourage her to attend the event. Especially recently, she had been lost in her own mind, and Weiss believed that was a good thing, considering the blonde was seriously thinking about ways to convince Blake to relax.

But since her attention had focused more on Blake, Yang was neglecting to see the strain the whole ordeal was putting on Ruby. Even now as Weiss watched the young girl, a knot twisted in her stomach.

Ruby looked almost depressed, hunched over and troubled beyond explanation as her mind traveled through mazes of thoughts about Blake and her team and their missions.

Weiss did her best to include Ruby in the dance preparations, asking her opinion on certain banners or decorations. And despite how Ruby always tried to give her best answer and sound interested, Weiss could tell she was detached from it all.

After a few hours, it made Weiss apprehensive enough to put down the bundle of table cloths she had been carrying and strut over to her leader.

"Yang!" she called across the room. "I'm taking a half-hour break!"

The blonde looked up from where she had been positioning a set of large speakers.

"Okay!" she waved. "I'll be here!"

Weiss nodded before giving Ruby her full attention.

"Come on," she grunted, pulling out Ruby's chair.

"Huh- wha-?"

"You're coming with me."

"B-But-"

"No 'buts' just get up."

Weiss gave a small tug to the back of her hood, speaking in a tone that left no room for questions. She spun on her heel and headed for the doors as Ruby wobbled to her feet, leaving the brunette jogging a bit to catch up.

"Weiss, where are we going?"

"Didn't you hear what I said? We're taking a break."

"_We? _But I didn't do any-"

"Just be quiet and follow me."

Ruby closed her mouth and nodded.

Once certain her partner was following her, Weiss took off down the hallway, bound for a certain part of the school. She had to slow her pace, constantly checking behind her to make sure Ruby was following. The girl's eyes were fixated on the floor, and she only just barely managed to keep up with the heiress.

But when Weiss caught her about to ram herself into a wall, that was the last straw. She took Ruby's hand tightly in her frustration and led her forward like a lost puppy.

After a few minutes, they made it to the cafeteria which was mostly vacant at this hour of the day. Even though it was Friday, classes had been called off so the dance could be prepared for, so the room was not terribly congested.

Weiss brought her partner over to an empty table where no prying eyes or eavesdropping ears could interrupt them. She pulled a chair out for Ruby and had her sit down.

"Wait here. I'll be right back."

She went up to purchase a few things – an apple and a few cookies – putting them in a small paper bag before returning to the table. She had only been gone a minute, but Ruby had already slumped forward, curling her arms onto the table and burying her face, sighing heavily.

Weiss sat down opposite her, putting the food aside.

"Alright," she said. "That's enough, Ruby. What's-"

But the girl did not move or lift her head even as Weiss spoke. The heiress huffed a breath and got up, skirting the edge of the table and instead taking a seat beside her leader.

"Ruby!" she said with soft urgency, shaking her shoulder lightly.

The brunette shot up quickly, eyes wide.

"Huh- wha-? Oh... sorry, Weiss. What did you need?"

Weiss narrowed her eyes, searching silver carefully, her own eyes hard. She could see the worry in Ruby's eyes, feel the tenseness in her shoulder, and Weiss took her hand away, bringing it back to her own lap.

Ruby did her best to hold the eye contact, but Weiss' stare bore into her, making her realize how bad she must have been with hiding her discomfort about everything.

She was just about to give in, but was surprised when Weiss did first. The heiress heaved a sigh, and it was her turn for slumping her posture.

"I _need_ you to tell me what's wrong," she said.

"What?" Ruby fiddled her hands in her lap. "Nothing's wrong, Weiss!"

"What kind of a leader lies to her team? To her own _partner?_" Weiss challenged.

Ruby took that comment to heart, and her forced smile faded in an instant.

"I'm sorry, Weiss..." Her voice was a guilty mumble, and it sent a pang through Weiss' chest.

"Never mind that." She reached down and placed a hand over Ruby's where they kneaded her dress in her lap. The younger girl looked up in surprise as Weiss went on. "Listen. I don't know what Yang has in store for dealing with Blake tomorrow, but she'll handle it just fine. Don't you trust your big sister?"

Ruby's lower lip trembled and she gave a short whimper.

"Of course I do! I'm just... I'm worried about Blake!"

"Don't you think we know that?" Weiss murmured. "Don't you think Yang and I feel the same? We're all worried about her, Ruby. But she's going to be okay. We're going to make sure of it."

"But she's not okay _now!_" Ruby cried, and the tears were spilling over now. "I-I want her to be okay _now!_ I want everyone to always be okay all the time! I don't ever want anyone to be sad o-or hurting..." A flash of emotion washed over her, her mind digging up old memories without her consent, memories of Yang and their father, their uncle Qrow, a woman in a white cloak-

"Ruby."

Weiss' soft voice stopped the flow of her thoughts before they could consume her, and the young leader's eyes shifted back into focus, bringing her back to the present moment. She blinked away the tears to clear her vision so she could give her partner the attention she deserved.

She felt Weiss' hand squeezing hers gently, the pad of her thumb tracing small circles over her knuckles. Her mist-blue eyes were downcast as she went on.

"Ruby... unfortunately, life isn't that easy or kind. No one can be completely happy all of the time. It's just not possible." She sounded like she was speaking from far too much experience, and Ruby sniffled as she listened to Weiss' subdued tone.

"People fall sometimes, Ruby. They need help getting back up, because sometimes they can't do it alone. That's why we rely on other people. But..." She looked up and met Ruby's eyes, and the intensity of her stare had Ruby's breath hitching. "But... there are people who always fall, and people who _always_ try to be there to pick them up. People who are _always_ trying to be there for _everyone_ _all of the time_, to make things better. Those are the people who get taken for granted and no one even realizes it. When those people fall – even if it's not often – it's always that much more devastating. And sometimes, no one is there to pick _them_ up."

She paused, offering a ghost of a smile as she gave Ruby's hands another squeeze.

"There are definitely some people who's behavior the world might be better off without. But it's losing the people who always help others – people like _you_, Ruby – that makes the world darker than it already seems to be."

Ruby felt more tears overflowing, and her body jolted with hiccups.

"W-Weiss... What do you mean...?"

The heiress' smile widened, just a little.

"I mean to say you're one of those people the world can't afford to lose, Ruby. You're so compassionate, so caring and warm. You make things _brighter_. But... when you're hurting, everyone else is at a loss for what to do. Of course we appreciate you worrying for us all the time. But that doesn't mean you can make yourself sick. Do you think Blake would like that?" she asked.

Ruby buried her face into her hood to wipe her tears before shaking her head.

"No..."

"And do you think Yang and I like to see her upset?"

"...No."

"Do you think we like to see _you_ upset?"

"...I guess not."

"You dunce," Weiss muttered. "Of course the answer is no."

Ruby chewed the inside of her lip for a moment before she sniffled and then tried on a smile.

"You're right, Weiss. I'm the leader of team RWBY, so I can't be all down in the dumps! I've gotta be happy so everyone else can be happy!"

"Oh no you don't." Weiss put up a hand to stop her, and the brunette tilted her head to one side, eyebrows raising in confusion. The heiress elaborated. "That doesn't mean you need to _pretend_ to be happy when you're _not_. Don't even _think_ about forcing your emotions. That's not what I'm saying. You're allowed to be angry or scared or sad too, Ruby. Just... when you are, let us _know_ so we can be there for you like you always are for us. Okay?"

Without waiting for an answer, Weiss pulled Ruby forward into a light hug, holding her for a moment, hoping she understood.

Ruby squeaked in surprise, but never refused the contact, going so far as to return it. She might have gotten a bit carried away though, because she did not let Weiss go for over a minute.

Weiss' hug was different from Yang's, but Ruby loved it all the same.

Weiss held her for as long as Ruby needed it, waiting for the sobs to fade away. When at last she pulled back, Ruby was still crying, but she was smiling now. Weiss reached for a napkin and cleaned off her face.

"There, there. Don't cry, you dolt..."

"Ehehe. Sorry, Weiss!"

"Don't be sorry."

"Sorry."

"What did I just say?"

"Oh! So- uh... okay."

"Good." Weiss sat back in her chair, and now that Ruby was smiling again, she let herself do the same. "Like I said, Blake will be fine. Trust in your sister."

"Yeah!" Ruby beamed. "I know she'll come through for us and for Blake!" She then lowered her voice a little, displaying her genuine gratitude. "Thanks, Weiss. I don't know what I'd do without you." She leaned forward and gave Weiss another squeeze for good measure. The heiress allowed it for a few heartbeats before she tapped the girl's back.

"Alright, alright," she murmured. "That's enough. So long as you understand now."

"I do, Weiss! Thank you so much. I'll be sure to share everything with you guys, good times and bad, and you'll do the same for me so we can all help each other."

"Glad to hear it."

Weiss closed her eyes, letting Ruby focus on the beautiful smile she showed her then.

It was perfection itself, and Ruby felt invincible in that moment, warmth flooding her chest and curling up comfortably.

At last, Weiss blinked her eyes back open and reached for her bag of food.

"Alright then. Now we've got ten minutes left before we've got to get back to Yang." She slid a cookie in front of her partner. "So eat up."

With a joyful squeal of her name, Ruby hugged her again before delightedly biting into her treat. Weiss rolled her eyes before taking a bite of her apple.

They ate in silence, before heading back to the ballroom, and they knew it their hearts everything would be okay in the end.

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**A/N: I'm sorry I just wrote this the day after the episode aired in between work and school so it's sloppy and bleck but hey, I did it so yeah.**

**Please review!**


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